Auxiliary engine feeding device



Nov. 12', 1940. w E ENNI 2,221,472

AUXILIARY ENGINE FEEDING DEVICE Filed Nov. 14, 1938 9kg. 3mm

Patented Nov. 12, 1940 k UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to an auxiliary engine feeding device of the type broadly shown in U. S. Patent No. 1,822,962, issued September 15, 1931 to myself and H. W. Crawford.

a More particularly, the present invention relates to an auxiliary device that is connected to and supplies to the intake manifold of a gas engine, vapor composed of additional air charged with a liquid, such as water, gasoline, kerosene, etc.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an'improved feeding device of the above kind that is composed of a few simple parts so that it may be economically manufactured, that is highly efficient in operation, and

16 that may be readily installed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide means for regulating the quantity of vapor discharged from the device in proper proportion to the volume of ordinary explosive charge supplied to the intake manifold from the engine carburetor The present invention consists in the novel form, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, shown in the accompanying drawing, and claimed.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a fragmentary View, partly in side elevation and partly in section, showing the present invention applied to an automobile.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the liquid reservoir forming part of the invention shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a horizontal section on line 33 of Figure 2; and Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of one of the baffle plates forming part of the construction shown in Figures 2 and 3.

eferring in detail to the drawing, the present invention includes a liquid reservoir or tank 5 which is preferably of cylindrical form and provided around the body thereof with spaced parallel outwardly pressed annular beads 6. A clamping band i snugly fits around the body of tank 5 between the beads 5 and has outturned ends il adjustably connected by a clamping screw 9 so that the band may be tightly clamped about the body of the tank 5. The outturned ends 8 terminate in laterally directed ears Hi arranged to flatly abut the dash H of the automobile and to be bolted thereto as at [2, whereby the tank may be firmly or rigidly mounted within the hood is of the automobile which houses the engine l4.

The tank 5 is adapted to be partially filled with 5 the desired liquid, and is provided with an air intake pipe l5 secured in and extending centrally through the top wall of the tank 5 downwardly into the liquid and terminating on the bottom of i the tank. The lower end of air inlet pipe [5 is provided with a plurality of side openings it permitting passage of the air from the lower end of pipe I?! into the surrounding liquid.

The engine M has the usual intake manifold ii to which explosive charges are supplied from a carburetor lit, the volume of such explosive 10 charges being varied by means of the usual footoperated accelerator including the usual link is extending to the valve lever Zll from the usual foot pedal, not shown.

, A flexible pipe or tube 2! is suitably coupled 15 at one end to a control valve 22 preferably of the wear-compensating turn plug type including .a casing with a tapered bore and a correspondingly tapered rotaryplug yieldingly urged to constantly fit snugly in the bore by means of a spring 2 as is well known in the valve art. The other side of valve 22 is coupled to a fitting Z3 tapped into the manifold Il above the carburetor is as l shown, or suitably placed in communication with the interior of said manifold in any suitable 25 Way, such as by means of the gasket fitting ll disclosed in the above-mentioned patent. The other end of tube or pipe 2| is coupled to a top outlet of tank 5 as clearly shown in Figures 1 and 2, and provided in the top of tank 5 is an air 30 relief valve or pet cock 2i adapted to be opened for permitting escape of air from the upper portion of tank 5 as it is displaced by introduction 'of liquid into the lower portion of tank 5 through the central pipe l5. In other w0rds,35 the pipe l5 functions both as a filling pipe and. an air inlet pipe for the tank 5.

Valve 22 is operatively connected by means of a link 25 with the operating link IQ of the foot accelerator, whereby the amount of vapor sup- 0 plied to the manifold ll by means of the present device is regulated in proper proportion to the volume of explosive charges supplied to the manifold I! from the carburetor Is.

In order to prevent excess moisture from being 45 drawn from the tank 5 along with the additional air supplied to the engine through pipe l5, tank 5 and pipe 2|, I provide suitable baffles 26, 26a. and 2'! within the upper portion of the tank 5 above the liquid level in the latter. As shown, 50 the baflles 26 and 2611 are in the nature of frustoconical rings tapering in a downward direction toward their central openings 28 and secured at their outer margins or edges within the beads 6 of the tank body. The openings 28 are slightly 5 and past the bai'lies 28, 25a and 21.

I which pass through the latter.

larger in diameter than that of the pipe l5 so as to surround the latter in uniform restricted spaced relation to the same. Due to the downward taper of the baffies 25 and 25a, any excess moisture which may find its way in the upper portion of tank 5 and be deposited on said baffles will be drained back into the bottom of the tank. The baflie 21 is also of frusto-conical form, but has asmall central opening to snugly fit at its inner edge or margin within an annular groove 29 provided in the pipe it. In this way, the baflle ii is effectively mounted on the pipe l5, and all of said bafiles' are preferably split radially as at 3% so that the ends may be separated to expand or contract the bafiies and facilitate application of the bafiies to the tank and pipe in an obvious manner. Baffle 27 tapers downwardly toward its outer edge so as to also drain moisture toward the bottom of the tank as it drips thereon from the upper baflie 26. In addition, bafiie 21 is of a diameter less than that of the body of tank 5 so that its outer edge is in uniform spaced relation to the body oi tank 5. The baflies thus form a tortuous path for the air as it passes upwardly in the upper portion of tank 5 after passing through the liquid in the lower portion of said tank and becoming saturated with such liquid. In order to facilitate partial filling of the tank 5 with liquid to the required level directly below the lowermost bafiie 25a, a suitable gage may be provided, such as a conventional water gage 3! connected at 32 near its lower end with the lower end of tank 5 and provided at the bottom with the usual drain cook 33 common to water gages. i

In operation, the tank 5 is partly filled with liquid introduced through the pipe 15. When the engine 14 is placed in operation, a suction, is created in the manifold ill and pipe 2i, which draws air into and through pipe it, through .the liquid in the bottom of tank 5, and then around This air is drawn from the air space in the upper portion of tank 5 through pipe 2! into the intake manifold it for being mixed with the explosive charges As the volume of explosive charges supplied to the engine is varied by operation of the usual foot accelerator, the quantity of additional treated air supplied to themanifold ll by means of the present device is correspondingly regulated duev to operative connection of the valve 22 with the operating link it! of the accelerator. The gage 3| will readily show when the liquid in the tank 5 needs to be replenished, and sediment or other foreign matter may be readily drained by means of the cock'33. Obviously, the present device may be used for many purposes, such as, humidifying additional air supplied to the engine manifold, charging the additional air with gasoline to facilitate starting in cold weather, and charging the additional air with kerosene for removing carbon.

It W111 be seen that the present device is eX- tremely simple in construction, will operate efficiently, and may be readily and economically manufactured and installed. Minor changes in details of construction illustrated and described are contemplated within the spirit'and scope of the invention as claimed.

What I claim as new is:

A device to supply treated air to the intake manifold of an explosive engine by inspiration, comprising a closed tank adapted to be partly filled with liquid, an air intake and filler pipe leading into said tank centrally through the top of the latter and depending to the bottom of said tank below the level of the liquid, baffles in the tank above the level of said liquid alternately carried bythe body of the tank and spaced from the air intake and filler pipe'and by the air intake and filler pipe and spaced from the body of the tank to provide a tortuous path for air passing upwardly from the liquid, an outlet conduit leading from the top of the tank above said bafiles and adapted to be connected to the engine intake manifold, and a control valve in said conduit, the body of the tank and said air intake and filler pipe having annular grooves receiving the adjacent edges of the respective baiiles, said baflies being of frusto-conical form and being respectively tapered inwardly-and downwardly and I outwardly and downwardly to drain excess liquid back to the lower portion of the tank, said baffles being further split radially to permit expansion or contraction thereof and facilitate application of the baffles to the tank and to said air intake and filler pipe.

CHARLES E. ENNIS. 

